A fantastic noir read - "Down on the Street" by Alec Cizak.

I came across Alec Cizak’s name as the editor of the excellent Pulp Modern magazine anthology.  So I wanted to sample his work.
 
Down on the Street, a novella in length, is the first of Cizak’s work I’ve tried.  Damn, it’s great!
This story is street level noir at its very darkest and grittiest.  The story is a insightful and brutally honest depiction of desperate, broken people; people with decent hearts deep down, but with not a single lucky break in their harsh existences.  Cizak creates memorable characters, some of whom you can find empathy for, as a fellow human being, others you would like to shoot.  And that is exactly as great noir writing should be.  The atmosphere is realistic and bleak, and there’s no shortage of genuine bad arses, on both sides of the law.  And this is all expertly crafted together with Cizak’s masterful use of language.  He’s an absolute pleasure to read, and I’ve already obtained another one of his which is on my TBR pile.
How’s this for the use of language to get a noir novel going – a quote from page 1:

“...people like him, people who’d missed the last train to the American Dream and needed a cheap place to loiter while time and gravity made death attractive.”
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Seeing that on page 1, I knew I was in for a great read.  And I loved every page.
Great writing, Mr Cizak, and I’m looking forward to becoming a rusted-on fan of your work.

Cheers,
ABP